Circuit breaker for snap switches



Sept. 17, 1929. I GATES 1,728,794

CIRCUIT BREAKER FOR SNAP SWITCHES Filed July 26, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet l Sept. 17, 1929. F. P. GATES CIRCUIT BREAKER FOR SNAP SWITCHES Filed July 26, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Zy /C-C6 c/gz'rvxeys.

Patented Sept. 17, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FREDERIC .P. GATES, OF WEST HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT AS SIGNOR, BY MESNE AS- SIGNMENTS, TO THE ARROW-HART & HEGEMAN ELECTRIC COMPANY, 01' HAIR-'1.- FORD, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTIIIGU'I.

CIRCUIT BREAKER FOR SNAP SWITCHES Application filed July 26,

The main object of my invention isto combine a circuit breaker with a snap switch which will actuate the switch directly.

A further object is to use a thermostatic 5 mechanism for breaking the circuit when an overcharge of electricity passes through the switch.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a sectional view on the line 1-1,

10 Fig. 4, illustrating my improved circuit breaker;

Fig. 2 is a plan view, dicating disk removed; Fig. 3'is an inverted plan view showing 15 the leverheld out of action by the thermostatic arm; I

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3, showing the thermostatic arm moved clear of the lever and the lever released;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 3, showing the lever retracted by the movement 'of the main switch spindle and the thermostatic arm returned to its normal position in the path of the projection on the lever;

26 Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the line 6-6,

Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 is a detached perspective view of the lever;

Fig. 8 is a detached view of the cam;

Fig. 9 is a detached perspective view of the thermostatic arm;

Fig. 10 is a detached perspective view of one of the-bolts;

Fig. 11 is a detached perspective view of 35 the snap plates; and

Fig. 12 is a View illustrating a modification of the invention.

1 is the body of the switch structure, made of porcelain or other suitable non-conduct- 4 ing material. 2 is one terminal of the switch, and 3 is the other terminal. The latter terminal has a binding post 4, towhich wires are attached. Both terminals are secured to the body portion by screws 6 and 7,

45 respectively. A binding post separate from the terminal 2, is secured to the body portion by a screw 8.

-'9 1s a thermostatic with the cap and inarm, preferably arranged: in a recess 111 the underside of the 50 body portion 1, and having two members that the moment the lever is moved away 1927. Serial Nb. 208,627.

and 11, made of two metals which difier in expansibility. The member 10 of the arm 9 is attached to the terminal 12 through which passes a screw 8, which connects this terminal with the binding post 5 on the face oi the switch. The other member 11 is attached to a terminal 13, which is secured in position by the screw 6 which also makes an electrical connection with the terminal 2 on the face of the switch. The thermostatic arm 9 is in the form of a loop as clearly shown in Fig. 9, normally resting a ainst a projection 14 on a lever 15 of the orm shown in Fig. 7. This lever is pivoted at 16 to a fixed disk 17 of the switch structure.

A spring 18 is attached to a lug 19 on a portion of the projection 14 and to a lug 20 on the terminal 13, tending to move the lever when released by the thermostatic arm 9. The lever has two arms 21 and 22, which normally rest under the sliding bolts 28 and 24, respectively, as shown in Fig. 3, and when the arm is in this position the switch mechanism acts as an ordinary switch but as soon as the thermostatic arm is moved away from the projection 14, due to an overcharge of electricity, then the sliding bolts 23 and 24 are released as shown in Fig. 4, the bolts having projections 25 on which rests a spring plate 26.

A spring 27 tends to force the spring plate 26 downwards and also tends to force the bolts 23 and 24 downwards, so that the bolts will be retracted when the arms are moved from under the bolts, as shown in Fig. 4. One or the other of these bolts is in the path of a lug 28 on the eccentric snap plate 29 actuated by the spring 30 in the spindle 31 of the switch, to which is attached the handle 32, so

from the ends of the bolts 23 and 24 by the spring 18 when the thermostatic arm 9 is retracted, the bolts are withdrawn from in front of the lug 28 of the snap plate 29, and the switch mechanism is snapped to the ofi position.

As shown in Figs. 1-6 and 11, a disc 39 is fixedly secured to the spindle 31 and has 9. depending finger 40 mounted thereon adapted to contact with the lug 28 on the eccentric 100 hold the lever in plate 29. The action of this is as follows: As the spindle 31 rotates, carrying with it the eccentric 36, the eccentric snap plate 29 is rotated in such manner that the lug 28 will move outwardly to a position enabling it to clear one or the other of the stops 41 and 42 on a cam plate broadly indicated at 43 in Figs. 1 and 6. At the moment that the lug 28 clears the stops 41 or 42, the finger 40 will transfer the motion of the spring 30 to the lug 28 and cause the switch to snap to its next position, either off or on, as the case may be. As is obvious from Fig. 11, the disc 39 is adapted to be mounted on the spindle by means of acentrally located orifice 44, and is further adapted to be secured to the switch structure by means of bolt holes or the like 45. The lug 28, which is in such position in the particular instance in the cycle of operation shown in Fig. 1 that it is not visible therein, is adapted under rotation of the spindle 31 to slide out and beyond the particular one of the cam faces 41 and 42 of the cam plate 43 with which it is in operable association, and then, bearing against the face of the cam plate, to depress one or the other of the 1 bolts 23 and 24.

A cam 33, Fig. 8, engages the projections 25 on the bolts 23 and 24, when the handle 32 is turned, so as to retract the bolts against the pressure ofthe spring 27 in the meantime a two-armed cam 34 on the spindle 35 returns the lever 15 to its normal position and allows the thermostatic arm 9, which has cooled, to return to the position in front of the projection 14 of the lever 15 as shown in Fig. 5, so that when the cam 34 has released the lever as in Fig. 3, the spring will move the lever so that the projection will be against the end of the thermostatic arm 9, which will this position until an overcharge of electricity again occurs. The lever 15 in this position is directly under the bolts 23 and 24 and holds them out of action, and these bolts will not be released until the thermostatic arm releases the lever.

When the handle 32 is turned, the eccentric 36 moves the plates 29 out of engagement with one of the projectin bolts 23 or 24, so as to release the contact lades 38', in order that they will snap into the on or the off position.

It will be noticed that the thermostatic arm is in the circuit leading to the switch, so that when an overcharge of electricity passes through the switch, the thermostatic arm will immediately release the lever 15 and throw the switch from the on to the off position, which will immediately cut out the switch. By this construction, the use of a second switch is obviated and the-construction of the switch considerably modified.

In the modification shown in Fig. 12, I have substituted a magnet 9 and a pivoted armature 9 for the thermostatic arm, so that under ordinary conditions the magnet. will not attract the arm and release the lever 15, but when an overcharge of electricity passes through the switch, the magnet will attract the armature and will move it out of the path of the projection 14 on the end of the lever 15, and the lever will operate as shown in the main figures of the drawings.

I claim:

1. The combination in a snap switch, employing movable switch blades; hand mechanism for moving the blades to on and off position; sliding bolts for engaging the snap mechanism; a lever for normally holding the bolts in projected position in the path of the snap mechanism; means for moving the lever so as to release the bolts; and a spring for depressing the bolts to allow the snap mechanism to move the blades to the above mentioned off position.

2. The combination of a snap switch; a. body portion; terminals thereon; a spindle; a handle on the spindle; blades; means for snapping the blades into the on or off position; two bolts projecting in the path of the snap mechanism; means for retaining the bolts in the raised position; a spring for retracting the bolts; and a thermostatic arm in the circuit of the switch and arranged to engage the means for holding the bolts in the raised position, said thermostatic means being released when an overcharge of elec tricity passes through the switch so as to cause the bolts to be retracted and the blades to snap. into the above mentioned off posit1on.

3. The combination of a. snap switch; a body portion; terminals thereon; a spindle; a handle on the spindle; blades; means for snapping. the blades into the on or ofi' pos1t1on;..two bolts projecting in the path of the snap mechan1sm;'means for retaining the belts in the raised position; a spring for retracting the bolts; a thermostatic arm in the circuit of the switch and arranged to engage the means for holding the bolts in the raised position, said thermostatic means being released when an overcharge of elec tricity passes through the switch so as to cause the bolts to be retracted and the blades to snap into the off position; a cam for raising the bolts; and a second cam for lifting the bolt-holding means so as to allow the thermostatic arm to re-set.

4. The combination in a snap switch, of a body portion; terminals thereon; a handled spindle; blades carried by the spindle; means for snapping the blades 1nto and out of position in respect to the contacts; two bolts normally projecting into the path of the snap mechanism; eccentric means for actuatin the snap mechanism to allow it .to pass the bolts when the spindle is turned by hand; a lever having arms projecting under the bolts to retain them in a normal raised position; a

may 3 spring for retracting the bolts when released; a cam on the spindle for resetting the bolts; a projection on the lever; a thermostatic arm engaging the projection, said thermostatic 5 arm being in the circuit of the switch; a spring for moving the lever when released by the thermostatic arm; a cam for resetting the lever after the thermostatic arm has released the same due to an overcharge of electricity passing through the switch, so that the thermostatic arm will automaticall reset itself upon the turning of the spind e by the handle. a

5. The combination in a snap switch, of a body portion; two terminals thereon; a third terminal in the circuit of the switch; a thermostatic arm having two members, one member being attached to the last-mentioned terminal so that the current vwill pass through the thermostatic arm; a pivoted lever having a projection engaged by the end of the thermostatic arm; hand-operated snap mechanism; blades arranged to snap into and out of engagement with the two main terminals; two bolts for engaging the snap mechanism, said lever having two arms arranged to pass under the bolts and hold them in a normal raised position; a spring for retracting the bolts when the arms of the lever are moved 0 clear of the bolts by the movement of the thermostatic arm due to an overcharge of electricity passing through the switch; a cam for raising the bolts; a second cam for resetting the ever which will allow the thermostatic arm to assume its position in front of the projection of the lever; a spring for moving the arm clear of the bolts; and an eccentrlc mechanism for the snap switch mechanism which will allow the mechanism to snap past the bolts when the handle of the switch is retracted, the bolts releasing the mechanism from the on to the oif position when the lever is released by the thermostatic arm.

FREDERIC P. GATES 

